By Dalton Balthaser

 

MIDDLETOWN – Jamie Lukowicz entered the final hole of the 22nd John P. Burke Memorial (Gross) with a two-shot lead over Seamus Fennelly.

 

A straightforward par 4 awaited, one where there isn’t really any trouble.

 

All Lukowicz had to do was two-putt from 25 feet for bogey to ensure victory. He three-putted for a closing double bogey leaving the door open for Fennelly to convert a 5-footer for par to force a playoff.

 

Lukowicz had zero control on his fate. He was in control for the prior 35 holes of the event. Fennelly missed his putt low and Lukowicz survived. 

 

He successfully defended his #BurkeMemorial title by one shot over the host club's Fennelly after a final round of 73 Wednesday at Wanumetonomy Golf & Country Club (par 70, 6,309 yards). 

 

He shot a round of 68 at Newport Country Club on Monday.

 

His two-day total of 1 under was the lone score under par. Heavy rain and wind was a factor for a majority of his round at Newport and hefty winds at Wanumetonomy wreaked havoc on the field.

 

“It was a tough day out there,” said Lukowicz, 46, of Newport. “I made some mental mistakes but I grinded it out."

 

“I thought shooting 3 under was what I needed to do to win today,” said Fennelly, 27, of Newport. “I knew where I stood the entire time. Once Jamie and I got to the back nine I figured it was match play between the two of us. I thought I had to make a three on the last to apply pressure. The wind just pulled my approach and it caught the bunker. It’s been a poor season in RIGA events even though I have been playing my best golf.”

 

Fennelly cut Lukowicz’s lead to one after starting 3 under through seven.

 

But clutch birdie putts from 15 feet on Nos. 9 (par 4, 369 yards) and 10 (par 4, 392 yards) put Lukowicz back in front.

 

Lukowicz got up-and-down for par on Nos. 16 (par 5, 556 yards) and 17 (par 3, 206 yards) to keep his advantage. Those saves won him the tournament.

 

“I feel like my game suits windy conditions like we had today,” said Lukowicz, of Agawam Hunt. “It also helps when you have three other players in your group and you can see how their ball reacts. It was blowing hard all day. Seamus played great.”

 

Players were raving about the conditions of Wanumetonomy. Even in hard conditions, players were impressed at how the Seth Raynor design played.

 

“Wanumetonomy is 10 times better than it used to be,” said Lukowicz. “Not that the course was bad before, it just tended to be soft and slow. The greens are fast and awesome.”

 

Lukowicz has had quite a season. His worst finish was a tie for 11th at the 37th Rhode Island Stroke Play at Quinnatisset Country Club.

 

His season highlight was winning the 115th Rhode Island Amateur at Pawtucket Country Club in July. And once the Player of the Year points are calculated to include the Burke, his name will finish at the top of the list for the second time (2015).

 

Lukowicz is the first player to win the Burke and the #RIAmateur in the same year since Bobby Leopold did it in 2009. He is also the latest to successfully defend his Burke title. Brad Valois did it in 2016-17.

 

“It was a great year for me,” said Lukowicz. “The Amateur is tough mentally and physically with the stroke play and match play portions. You can lose a match in an instant and then you are done. With COVID-19 playing a part in making this year different than any year, I still had a lot of fun and am happy to close out the year with the win.”

 

Senior Division 

 

In last year’s Senior Division of the Burke, Bruce Heterick three-putted the final hole at Shelter Harbor Golf Club to lose to Jon Fasick.

 

In this year’s edition he was faced with the same task. Except this time he rolled a beauty from 40 feet to a foot to claim the Senior Division of the Burke (Gross) at Wanumetonomy (par 70, 6,036 yards).

 

“I was inconsistent this year in the tournaments, so it is nice to close this one out,” said Heterick, 57, of Barrington. "It was nice to come back and take care of business this year.”

 

The reigning Senior Player of the Year carded a closing round of 74 to claim a two-shot victory over Agawam Hunt clubmate Dean Parziale and Warwick Country Club’s Joe Hassett.

 

Heterick finished at 5-over-par total for the two rounds at Newport and Wanumetonomy.

 

His round was highlighted by two birdies on Nos. 6 (par 4, 395 yards) and 8 (par 4, 372 yards). He rolled in a 20-footer on No. 6 and stuffed an 8-iron from 140 yards to six feet on No. 8 to seize the lead.

 

He was tied with Hassett heading to No. 17 (par 3, 192 yards). Heterick got up and down from the bunker and Hassett made bogey. That was all the advantage Heterick needed. 

 

“I didn’t play either of the courses prior to this,” said Heterick. “But I enjoyed them both. It is nice to bookend the year starting with a win in the Senior Four-Ball (Gross) at North Kingstown with Dean and closing it with the Burke. Not much else you can ask for.”